Driver Side Impact with bands
Like the TV Show, School Boy Humor, Blinded Black and Four Letter Lie
Jan. 30, 2008 • Studio A, Miami, FL.
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Blinded Black keyboardist and vocalist, Chuck Kraus
By Maria Valdivia
Photos by Gina Denis
Playing a show in Miami can be tough for any band, especially new ones. It’s a long drive down for a late night gig in the middle of downtown. But that didn’t seem to faze Driver Side Impact when they recently stopped by Studio A with four incredible opening acts to kick off a tour in support of their upcoming debut album, The Very Air We Breathe.
The night started off with Like the TV Show, a local band from Miami. The band’s sense of style definitely added to their outstanding performance. Four of the band members wore long-sleeve shirts with ties and jeans (with the exception of lead singer, Dexter Scott), giving them a very different feel from the usual tight-jeans-and-random-T-shirt affair.
With their faithful fans in attendance, the band captured everyone’s attention with a rock sound as distinct as their style. "This isn’t indie and this isn’t pop. This is called music," said Scott onstage. Songs like, "My Year" and "Well Spent" served as proof of the band’s fresh talent.
Up next was School Boy Humor, a band from Little Rock, Arkansas. With their poppunk sound, the band flooded the stage with energy, especially their three vocalists Anthony Evans, Phil Evans and Caleb Spillyards, who were all quite witty. They may have gained some new fans in Miami as the crowd was really digging them. One of the crowd’s favorites was "Hey Miss Wright," which is one of their latest songs.
School Boy Humor's Caleb Spillyards, keys, and Phil Evans, vocals
Blinded Black, a band from Saint Louis, Missouri, got the crowd even more hyped. Despite the fact that they weren’t well known by most of the audience, the crowd responded enthusiastically to every single "Put your hands up!" the band shouted. Their music was a bit of a mix between pop punk and screamo, as heard in songs like "Can You Hear Me Now," which received a positive response from the new audience.
When I finally thought the performances couldn’t get any better, Four Letter Lie, a band from Minneapolis, Minnesota, performed and left me with those chills that you get when you know you know that something’s good. Songs like "Feel Like Fame" and "Tell Me About Everything," were the source of those chills. It was clear I wasn’t the only one getting into them: There were three hyped fans grooving to their hardcore beats.
After all that anticipation for the headliners Driver Side Impact from Cleveland, Ohio, I must admit their performance was a bit disappointing. They have talent, no doubt, but as far as their performance, it lacked energy. "The Artist" and "Reasons We Sleep" are clear evidence of their amazing mix of emo and ambient sounds, but they failed to engage and involve the crowd as the previous bands did. I’m hoping they have gusto next time around to match their amazing sound.
In the end, the show at Studio A was overall filled with much energy and talent. Despite the fact that they weren’t that well known by the Miami crowd, these five bands gave a hell of a show that surely left their music imprinted on the new audience’s minds.
Let us know what you think at outloud@outloud.com..
Blinded Black's Chuck Kraus
Blinded Black guitarist Nick Rohlmann
Matt, bassist for Driver Side Impact
Like the TV Show vocalist Dexter Scott
4 Letter Lie vocalist Brian Nagan
Blinded Black vocalist Jeff Nizick